Batgirl
|skills = |hobby = Fighting crimes. Working. |goals = Help Batman and the city of Gotham. Help the inhabitants of Burnside. |family = |friends = Batman Robin Nightwing James Gordon Supergirl Black Canary Huntress Alfred Pennyworth Power Girl Batwoman Cassandra Cain Poison Ivy (formerly) Oracle (android; formerly) Justice League Teen Titans |enemies = Joker Two-Face Penguin Riddler James Gordon Jr. The Mirror Talon Oracle (android) Injustice League |type of hero = Vigilante}} Batgirl is a character in the Batman comics, TV series, and in one film Batman & Robin. Her real name is Barbara Joan Gordon, the daughter of Commisioner Gordon. She first appeared in Detective Comics #359 as the original Batgirl. Batgirl has a crush on Dick Grayson, the first Robin and later Nightwing. She also teams up with Batman, and Robin to fight the Joker, and other villains. Batgirl is also best friends with Supergirl. She was created by the late Julius Schwartz, the late Gardner Fox, and the late Carmine Infantino. History Post-Crisis From a young age Barbara Gordon had always wanted to be a superhero, and would spend hours with her best friend Marcy designing different costumes and coming up with superhero identities. When Barbara was 13, her parents were tragically killed in a car accident and she was adopted by her uncle James Gordon in Gotham City, where Barbara eventually learnt about the masked vigilante Batman and how he fights against the city's corruption. Barbara was inspired by the Dark Knight's actions and began to emulate him by learning self-defence in which she became a black belt within a short period of time. She also buckled down in her school studies and was able to graduate from high school as well as enrolled in university all at the age of 16 due to her high intelligence. Barbara continued her self-defense training with Jujitsu and got a job at the Gotham library before she eventually pursued her dream job in law enforcement. However her attempts were shot down by her adopted father and the FBI as she didn't fit the height requirements for the jobs she applied for. Upset by this, Barbara constructed a "Bat-Girl" outfit to wear at a GCPD fundraiser in order to spite Jim Gordon, but soon wound up living her role when Killer Moth crashes the party and holds millionaire Bruce Wayne hostage. Barbara as Batgirl finds a way to save Bruce, although he didn’t actually need saving and uses his "rescue" as an excuse to change into Batman. Killer Moth soon got the better of Barbara until she is saved by the Caped Crusader who chided her for putting herself in harms way and told her to pursue a different lifestyle. However Barbara did not give up winning over Batman's trust and secretly continues her crimefighting activities as Batgirl with some help from Dick Grayson, who revealed to her his superhero identity as Robin. Eventually Bruce accepted Batgirl as part of his Bat-Family after making her swear an oath and she fought alongside Batman and Robin for many years until deciding to retire from vigilantism. Unfortunately, it was around this time that the Joker invaded her home to kidnap Jim Gordon in a plot to drive him insane. To do this, Joker shot Barbara in the abdomen which left her paralysis from the waist down. Barbara was further tormented by the Joker, and took pictures of her vulnerable to show to Jim to cause him to go mad, to no avail. Although Batman manages to save her father, the experience left Barbara severely traumatized and unable to walk again. Despite this horrific event, Barbara decided to return to crimefighting by building one of the world's most complex computer networking systems and accumulated massive amounts of information to become an invaluable source of intel for Batman and his allies as the Oracle. Barbara would also put together her own team of female superheroes called the Birds of Prey, and even chose Cassandra Cain and Stephanie Brown as her successors to the Batgirl mantle. After years of secrecy, Barbara eventually revealed her careers as both Batgirl and Oracle to her dad, who revealed he already knew and was proud of her using her talents for the benefit of the world. ''New 52'' Batgirl's history was altered for the New 52. In this continuity, Barbara is not adopted by James Gordon (who is back to being unaware of her superhero identities) and is now his legitimate daughter. Barbara's mother Eileen Gordon left her family when her daughter was a young teen. A few years later, the Batman debuted. This inspired young Barbara to become Batgirl. Soon, she began working with Batman and his teen partner Robin. After about a year as Batgirl, Barbara was shot in the spine by the Joker. During this time, she operated as an information broken under the alias Oracle and served as valuable source of intel for various superheroes. Barbara gradually regained the use of her legs over the course of three years through the use of special exercises and advanced technology, which allowed her to return to field duty as Batgirl. However, she had trouble readjusting to this lifestyle due to past trauma and conflicting emotions, which was not made easier by the manipulations of her psychotic brother James Gordon Jr. and a encounter with the Joker. The Darkest Reflection Her first real challenge back in the suit was a serial-killer named the Mirror who targeted those who escaped death through miracles. She met a brain-damaged psychic named Gretel who reminded her of the person she could easily have become. Birds of Prey Batgirl initially refused to join when her old friend Black Canary put together a black-ops team called the Birds of Prey. However, she assisted them on a mission when they went after the super-villain Choke. Their first encounter with him was erased from all the Birds' minds, and Batgirl does not even remember the team-up.6 Despite this, she helped them take down Choke's sleeper agents known as the Cleaners. They tracked down their leader, a psychic named Trevor Cahill, and Batgirl was finally able to reconnect with Canary as close friends. Quotes Trivia *In The New Batman Adventures and Gotham Girls, she is voiced by Tara Strong. Unlike the other characters she voiced, she voiced Batgirl in her own voice. She reprises that role in Super Best Friends Forever, Teen Titans Go! and in the animated feature, Batman: The Killing Joke. See Also *Oracle Navigation Category:Female Category:Honorable Category:Teenagers Category:Fighters Category:Batman Heroes Category:DC Heroes Category:Martial Artists Category:Vigilante Category:Comic Book Heroes Category:Cartoon Heroes Category:Friend of a Villain Category:Pawn of the Villain Category:Sidekicks Category:In Love Category:Injustice Heroes Category:Teen Titans Members Category:Justice League Members Category:Young Justice Members Category:One-Man Army Category:Live Action Heroes Category:Rescuers Category:Protectors Category:Keeper of Secret Identity Category:Action Movie Heroes Category:Localized Protection Category:Ninjas Category:Genius Category:Determinators Category:Hope Bringer Category:Role Models Category:Stock Characters Category:TV Show Heroes Category:Strategists Category:The Icon Category:Famous Category:Related to Villain Category:Archenemy Category:Super Power Beat Down Category:Legacy Category:Status Dependent on Version Category:Movie Heroes Category:Predecessor Category:Loyal Category:Virtually Resourceful Category:Selfless Category:Merciful Category:Honest Category:Superheroes Category:Arrogant Category:Dreaded Category:Outright Category:Lethal Category:Amazons Category:Doctors and Scientists Category:Misguided